Away From Home
by Urdyonlione
Summary: Naru already decided he'd never look back to Japan again, after all, two months had already passed since he returned to England. But an awakening call bringing a news he'd never wanted to hear changed it all. Mai was missing. He had to come back and save her, but will it be in vain? In a blood tainted search, will she be back unharmed? MAI x NARU
1. Prologue

**Away From Home**

**Prologue**

_.~*Flashback*~._

_It was two months since Gene's funeral, two months since he last drink a certain blend of tea, and two months since his return to England. It was natural, Naru thought, that after his return, he'll never think of going back to Japan. After all, it was the place where the only or rather, his most cherished person had died—a violent death. But after a certain call, all this thoughts vanished and only one name resounded in his head._

_Ring. Ring. Riiing~_

"_Hello?" Naru answered the phone visibly irritated. "Whoever this is, you should probably know it's already midnight."_

"_Noll! Thank God!" a frantic female voice answered._

"_Madoka? This better be important. You of all people should kno-"_

"_It is. It's Mai. She's missing." Madoka's voice, though sounded calm had been laced by panic, pain, and worry._

"_What?" Naru's senses woke up completely. Although at first, he only heard the words 'Mai' and 'Missing' it didn't take him more than a second to piece it out. But just to clarify, or rather, to hope that he heard wrong, he had to ask._

"_Ayako called me. They went to Mai's apartment to check on her, if she's ok, but when they got there. The apartment was in complete ruin. Nobody knew what happened. They said they didn't know your number, and even Masako said that you're the first person to be informed, so they contacted me. Your help is much needed Naru." Ditching honorifics altogether since they weren't in Japan, Madoka ranted relentlessly, even forgetting to breathe in between._

"_Why me? Shouldn't they call the police?" Naru tried to sound non-chalant but Madoka knew better._

"_Actually, they could but Ayako said they couldn't risk it. The place had dents all over. And those Dents couldn't have been made by a normal person. Moreover, Mai's neighbors didn't even know that something happened, which is very impossible by looking at the state of that place. And before you ask, I knew because they sent me images in my email."_

"_I understand." Naru pinched the bridge of his nose. _

"_Madoka, I need a ticket for a flight tomorrow, I'll call Lin, and you inform the others. I'm going back to Japan. I have to go back. We could just wish she stays unharmed until we come to her rescue, or whatever it is she poked her head into."_

"_As much I as I ask the same, there was also blood all over the place, we could only wish it wasn't hers."_

_Mai. What have you gotten into this time? Bloody Hell._

Okay~! I know I take too long to update and yet here I am with a new story. Reaaaally sorry.. it's just that I find it wasteful I don't type it.. it just keeps coming.. XD don't worry, it's all in my head, just need some time to write~ ^^

Here are my other fics:

Back Off! (up to chap 2, ongoing)

Returning to My Monochrome World (chap 1, ongoing)

Miss Understanding Mai, Misunderstanding Naru (oneshot, typing)

Taking Chances (typing)

Please Read & Review ^^

Especially Review so I can decide which to update first.. hehe . Thankies~!

.~*Urdyonlione*~.


	2. Chapter 1

"_We are now beginning our descent. We ask you to fasten your seatbelts at this time."_

Naru stared out the window as the plane descends and the map-like view of Japan became clearer. Holding a phone in one hand and a few pictures–you'd wonder if real or edited graphics—in the other, he sat there, still and void of any emotions. Before, during and probably after the flight, Naru wasn't in the mood to talk to anyone, even Lin. He called the Chinese man the night before and it turns out that he was already informed by Madoka and wasn't really surprised that Naru decided to return to Japan, after all, if Naru won't go, even he decided he would.

It was decided by both of them that Naru's _cause of return _would be the rising supernatural phenomena in Japan and SPR's Japanese branch would once again be headed once again by the one and only 'Shibuya Kazuya'.

When the plane came to a full stop, Naru unbuckled his seatbelt and immediately stood up and went to the door, Lin followed suit. Both passengers and attendants just stared at them. Who wouldn't? Two handsome men clad in black strode effortlessly to the door. One attendant gathered all his courage—and probably, also confidence—to reprimand the said passengers only to meet to cold blue orbs' glare before he could even start.

"_We're in a hurry."_ Naru said in english with a fluid british accent.

When the door opened they climbed down without a word not waiting for the instructions. Silence enveloped the plane until the attendant/announcer snapped from her trance and proceeded with the disembarking instructions. Meanwhile, Naru and Lin didn't even bother to try to mix with the crowd.

'_Japan, here I am again. I never thought I'd be back so soon, neither did Luella.' _Naru thought. He frowned remembering his conversation with his mother. He actually knew she would over react.

Apparently, Luella was surprised that Naru decided to go to Japan so suddenly and to call and inform her about his decision _from the airport _while at it—opposite from Martin's reaction since he was already informed by Lin. Of course at first she frantically cried telling and forcing him to stop and think before he makes _sudden decisions_. Naru, was calming his self at that very moment—it was his mother—he chanted to himself trying to ask his mother to give just a little more time to give a little bit more of information about what was happening. At the first mention of the name _'Mai'_ his mother seemed to understand him and just listened. After his explanation, he didn't knew that on the other side of the phone, his mother was fighting a smile—after all, when you heartless son decides to return to a place he wouldn't even want to dream about to save a single girl? Who wouldn't?—but Luella decides that the matter was much worse so she let this one slid off, maybe she could pester Naru later, when things are much lighter. With that, they had let the issue of Naru returning to Japan go.

Now Naru had to look at the much bigger problem.

On the other side of the glass, Madoka, Ayako and Bou-san waited. Unlike the others who were excitedly waiting for their family and friends, they were quite grim. And finally, they meet.

Madoka was the first one who noticed them. Ayako was staring at the blankness while Bou-san was visibly irritated—not the first time, but definitely something you'd like to pass—He was much more comfortable with the Ayako that was vigorously bickering with him than the Ayako that was shell-shocked by a certain scene.

"They're here." Madoka took a breath of relief and at the same time Ayako snapped back to reality with a little hope that lit her face, and with this, Bou-san seemed to calm down completely.

When they saw the black clad pair, they realized that almost nothing changed—almost. Naru still wore black all over and the same priceless _and_ emotionless façade but his eyes couldn't be said as one like 'lying' like what Mai once described it, now, it was empty. No once commented about it and somehow they knew that it was better if they stayed quiet about taking notice of it because they also saw it as a fragile glass threatening to break and to let emotions flow—and Naru wouldn't want that. As for Lin, he was as stoic as ever but at least he managed a fraction of a smile for reassurance.

Naru didn't talk. So no one did, no one dared, and no one knew what to say or do. Finally, Naru sighed and every one let go of the breath they did not notice they were holding.

"We, Lin and I, will be settling on SPR for the moment. As it is, we should discuss the _current situation_ there. Madoka, is the van ready?" And Madoka simply nodded once and head out. The others followed.

When Naru and Lin entered the van, they wondered why Madoka still hasn't boarded yet. She was looking back at Bou-san's car.

"Naru, I think it would be better if I ride Bou-san's car. Besides, it would be great test for Lin if he still knew the way back to Shibuya." Madoka said with smile. This is what she does best, trying to lighten up the mood a little. Lin replied with half a smile while Naru gave her a questioning look then nodded.

It wasn't a long ride like they expected it to be. As always, Lin and Naru's car was as silent as ever but what was new was Bou-san's car. Both parked their respective cars in front of the café below the office. When they reached the office, Naru couldn't help but wonder how things were kept the same way even after he left. He stopped right at the door, after Lin unlocked it and made his way in. He thought that since Madoka will be left with the responsibility of keeping the business going, the place would've had a total make over.

"Mai told me to keep it this way. She was hoping you'd come back and she said that you'd probably want this place the way it used to be—especially the office—for you to use when you come back. I didn't have the heart to tell her that it wasn't in your plans so I let her have her way. She kept everything in place for the last two months, acting like how she would clean it if you were away from your expeditions on finding Gene's body." Madoka explained in a raspy whisper trying to keep herself from crying. Naru simply nodded and walked in, a frown forming in his face and he didn't know why. Maybe because of the guilt of knowing that Mai was waiting for him despite all that he said and that happened between them.

Every one that was present sat down one by one. Lin and Bou-san on the other hand unloaded the van and took the equipment to the storeroom of the office. After they finished, the sat with the others and Lin took out his Laptop, ready to type in any information he thought would be useful in the future. Then Naru begun.

"Now, where shall we start?"

Okay~! Chapter one is up~! ^^ as promised, this one was the one voted to be updated, so here it is.. ^^

I wasn't planning to end chap as it is.. but.. here it is.. XD

Is it good? Bad? Lacking? Please tell me.. REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW .. ^^

Hmm. I'll probably post Chap 2 next week.. probably.. ^^

Seriously, I need Reviews.. XD Thankies~! ^^

Btw, all my stories are ongoing.. it's just that finding time to type is very rare.. XD lol .

.~*Urdyonlione*~.


	3. Chapter 2

"Now, where shall we start?" Naru began as soon as everyone was seated. In response to this, Bou-san looked at Ayako who was once again lost in her thoughts then to Madoka who gave him a nod signaling him to begin. Bou-san sighed.

"It was a week ago when Madoka called in that Mai hadn't been showing up on SPR for the week. She said that files were already piled up and she was the only one here so she really needed help and Mai was nowhere around."

"Yasu's busy with university activities so he couldn't come. Mind you, Mai does filings best even you know that Naru, and another reason is that her school called and inquired if we were having cases because they were concerned that Mai was absent for a span of one week and we usually don't take that long _and_ Mai files proper absence slip for the school whenever we _do_ have a case and this time, she didn't. After knowing these, I got worried that maybe something came up." Madoka interjected. "And it seems like my worry was in place." She continued in a low whisper.

"When I tried to call her, it's always the machine that picked up. I figured that it was all too suspicious, I mean, come on, knowing Mai we all know she'd call back when she have the time but all through the week? Not even a single phone call? Definitely not like her. So I called Ayako for Mai's address to check up on her and she said that she also wanted to come since it's been a while since she saw the girl and decided to meet me here in SPR. Then we went _there_."

_**.~*Flashback*~.**_

"_God! Takigawa what took you so long? I've been here for more than ten minutes!" Ayako said with a hand on her hips and the matching rhythm of her shoes._

"_My, my... Are you trying to impersonate Naru? You have got to be more convincing than that. Get in the car." Bou-san retorted as he open the door. "If you want, try that with Mai, that'd surely make her laugh."_

_|Thud|_

"_Ow! What was that for?" Bou-san whined while massaging the bump on the back of his head._

"_Boys need to be more sensitive." Ayako sighed then stared at Bou-san with a raised brow as if waiting for realization to dawn._

"_Oh. Oooh~ I get it now. I almost forgot, Jou-chan confessed to him before he left."_

"_You know, when I said boys_, Oliver _is one of them."_

"_You know, I still can't process the truth that our Naru is Oliver Davis."_

"_Whatever." End of conversation, Bou-san thought. Maybe redirecting the topic on hand is in one way a good thing and the other way, not._

_Before reaching their destination, they got into several arguments about every little thing and more than once did Bou-san had a stinging sensation in his 's part of their routine, they're not themselves when the bickering is missing._

"_Is this the place? Finally! I wouldn't last another minute inside the car with you and your purse." Bou-san said as he got out the vehicle._

"_Say that again and next you'll have stilettos hanging in your head." After hearing that, Bou-san shut his mouth and raised both hands as a sign of surrender. It's probably a good idea if he still wants to get home alive. So instead, he focused on Mai's apartment._

_Its Takigawa's first time visiting and he was relieved to see that Mai was living in a quite comfortable place. He always wondered how a young lady of Mai's age managed to live in comfort without any support from parents and/or relatives. Mai was an orphan, and all of SPR had known that for quite some time and accepted the fact—and the so called 'responsibility'—of them taking care of Mai. After all, they had the same thought… They think of Mai as a part of their family as much as Mai thinks of them as her family._

"_It's a nice place." Bou-san carefully started a conversation as they ascend the stairs. "It's a good thing that Mai picked a quite crowded neighborhood."_

"What's so good about that? Living in a crowded environment is troublesome, often, when living in these kinds of houses you can't keep your privacy for a long time."

"_You only say that because you only lived in comfort all your life. Your mother's a doctor; your father's a business man… If your father died when you were young and you mother followed soon after, you wouldn't be able to complain about 'keeping your privacy'." Bou-san muttered and had his guard—his hands—up expecting another hit from Ayako, but it didn't come. When he peeked he saw her wearing a mix of pained and guilty expression. _

"_Sorry." Ayako managed to reply while still looking straight at the steps. Bou-san smiled at this but kept that smile to himself. Hah. He was right for once. There was a bit of silence until they reached Mai's door._

"_My point is, for all we know, Mai lives by herself so if in case something happened, she could call for help. It's almost impossible thatno one would come to her rescue." Bou-san said as he rang the doorbell. _

_|ding-dong|_

_|ding-dong|_

_Ayako sighed. Not even a rustle could be heard from inside._

"_Maybe she's really not around?" Ayako pondered._

"_Hmm.. well, no one says she couldn't be out of town if she wants to. But still, she was absent from school and she should've have called and informed Madoka if she was planning to be away for some time.. I'll go ask her neighbors."_

_Ayako was fumbling with the door while Bou-san knocked on the door next to Mai's and was greeted by ashort elderly woman._

"_Uhm, hello.. Good afternoon ma'am."_

"_Oh. Likewise. Is there something I could help you with young man?"_

'_He called me young!' Bou-san mouthed to Ayako before responding while Ayako just rolled her eyes._

"_I was wondering if you know where Mai went, the one living next door. We were informed by her school that she was absent and well, we're like her surrogate family and we're concerned. Did she happen to tell you where she would go?"  
_

"_Ah. Taniyama-san?Hmm. I did notice that there weren't anybody in her room for the past week, but unfortunately, she hadn't mentioned anything to me. If it helps, last week, there was a young man her age who was waiting or rather standing outside." The woman said as she pointed the empty space below._

_Bou-san and Ayako's ears perked up with this new information._

"_Could you please tell us more about this_ person_? A clearer description perhaps? If you don't mind that is._" _Bou-san tried to pry as much information as he can. After all, if this person is involved in Mai's 'disappearance' it's something they shouldn't miss._

"_ seemed rich and all, he had a very expensive car and he was also good-looking if I may say. He had long silver hair and he always wore black."_

"_Always?" Ayako queried. 'Always' is not a good sign, she thought._

"_He was around for about five days. The ladies in the fourth floor were openly flirting with him but he didn't seem to bulge. Ho~ It was a nice little view." The woman chuckled then continued._

"_But it seemed like he was only watching, specifically Taniyama-san's room. When I start to find it odd and unnerving I asked Taniyama-san if he knew the guy and she said that she didn't so I told her to call and report it to the police cause it could be a stalker—she is a pretty little lady after all—but she only replied that there is no need because its 'impossible' and the man probably was after one of the girls from the fourth floor. Basically, she shrugged the idea of that man being dangerous so I did the same." _

"_Totally like Mai." Bou-san and Ayako said in unison._

"_That is all I remember. Should I have reported it to the police?"_

"_No, no, it's okay after all we still haven't exactly pieced everything together yet. It's not good to jump into conclusions. By the way, thank you for the information Mrs. …"_

"_Hanako, Hanako Matsuyama."_

"_Thank you Matsuyama-san." _

"_You're welcome. Please do inform me if you get something about Taniyama-san. I've known her for years and it hurts to think that something bad happened to her. She's a nice and cheerful girl."_

"_Yes, we'll do." Bou-san replied as the door in front of him slowly closed._

_|Click|_

_And the door in front of Ayako opens._

_._

_._

_._

_Ayako was only listening as the elderly woman spoke and she was fumbling with the doorknob when it opened the same time as the neighbor's door closed._

_A familiar smell greeted her. The smell immediately spread, faster than Ayako could react. She took a step back and when she gasped, she had a faint taste of it— at the same time, she figured what it was._

_Blood._

_She was a doctor for heaven's sake! She shouldn't be reacting like that, she of all people should've been the one who was calm and composed, but all of the years she spent training vanished when the air she breathed was so full of the smell of _it_, she couldn't help but fill her lungs and ready for a scream, but with the volume of the substance she almost choked. At the time that she was really on the verge of screaming, she was stopped by a hand on her mouth._

"_Ayako! Ayako calm down." Bou-san hissed. Ayako tried to break free from the monk's grasp and scream her heart out, but he was indeed too strong for her._

"_No. Don't shout, if you do, Matsuyama-san and the others will hear. It'll be a mess. Please, calm down for a sec." Bou-san continued to whisper in Ayako's ear. She hadn't notice but tears trickled down her face. She was quickly losing her composure. For all she cares, at that moment one person came into her mind._

_Mai._

_Ayako stopped struggling and Bou-san loosened his hands. Ayako sobbed._

"_Takigawa.. Mai.. Blood.. It's everywhere!" She managed to utter between hiccups, she was babbling and she knew it. But at the same time, she knew she made sense. One of the perfect reasons was because the highest probability is that of the owner of the blood that was splattered in front of them can be her precious friend that she treated like her own sister, or even daughter._

"_Ayako, can you manage to make a call? We should call Madoka immediately. I'll go inside and check if there's..someone there."_

"_How can you be so calm-!"_

"_I am not calm Ayako! I of all people should be the one breaking down the most right now! But try to look at yourself in the mirror right now! At least one of us should be able to hold back and think clearly, and right now, I think that'd be me." Bou-san half whispered. He was trying to sound more convincing but at the same time, trying not to alert the neighbors of what they had 'discovered'. _

"_You understand now? Now, call Madoka. I'll go inside, stay here." With this, Ayako began dialing Madoka's number with trembling hands while Bou-san slowly walked in. Ayako didn't leave her eyes from Bou-san—afraid that if she even blinked, she'd be lucky or unlucky enough to see a dead monk's body lying on the floor, and either way, she wouldn't want that._

Then suddenly, Ayako's eyes widened.

"_Idiot! Don't touch anything! Do you want to be a murderer?" Bou-san tried not to smile, it was much more like it, Ayako yelling at him—rather than Ayako disheveled and sobbing._

"_And since when did touching things can cau—"_

"_Houshou!"_

"_Fine." Since then, Bou-san refrained to touch anything and carefully studied the place, and covering his nose from the smell of dried blood. He also took pictures to have photographic evidence for the rest of SPR. He could hear Ayako from outside._

"_She picked up! Hello? Madoka? This is serious. I—we—think something really bad happened to Mai, her apartment is wasted—"_

"_God Ayako! There were even dents on the wall and Matsuyama or anyone for that matter didn't notice anything?" Bou-san said as he got out._

"_And that too, you heard him." Ayako continued on the phone. "Yes, yes, no!, yes, we'll go there immediately, well close the door and make sure nobody find out about this. I'll inform Masako while we ride to SPR." _

"_Madoka said she'll have to call Naru." She said as she ended the call._

"_So be it, now let's go." He said as he opened the car door for Ayako._

_**.~*End of Flashback*~.**_

"So basically, that was all that happened during our _visit_ at Mai's..apartment." Bou-san said as he finished recalling the whole event of going to Mai's place, especially about the enigmatic young man wandering around Mai's apartment, but carefully omitting their conversation about Mai's confession, Naru being Oliver Davis, and boys being insensitive. Ayako on the other hand listened as she recalled the events to herself and adding minor details that Bou-san miss.

Bou-san and Ayako stared at Naru for a while after this, waiting for his response or orders or his hunches. The thing they need the most is Naru's view on this, not for the first time did they want to know what was going on his mind, but for once, just this once, they needed to know.

"Lin, do you perhaps think I could use psychometry? Maybe I would be able to see what really happened that day." Naru said with a slightly wavering voice not enough to be noticed by everyone but only to _some_. The last thing he needed to know right now is that the owner of the blood that was grotesquely splattered in that apartment was Mai's. But it's worth the shot, on the other hand, maybe this could be the positive reassurance everyone was waiting for—that those _blood_ weren't Mai's.

Ayako's face lit up with the idea, and so did with Madoka and Bou-san. They almost forgot, Naru—Oliver Davis—once found a millionaire's son with the help of his psychometry, of course he wouldn't hesitate to use it for Mai—if he did, they have their ways.

"Of course Noll, it's your decision, and I agree with it." Lin replied, he and Madoka was actually surprised that Naru picked psychometry reading as the first course of action, he usually pick this last but it seems like he's ready to give his all in this _case_ and so do they.

"Then, let's go." Naru said as he took his black coat and readied to go out. It took a while for the members to process this, even Lin and Madoka.

"Time is running, we can't waste time." Naru finally said before he disappeared to the front door.

_|click|_

Lin immediately followed. After a few moments, the others did the same.

Outside, Lin and Bou-san readied their respective cars while Madoka contacted Masako with the latest happenings.

"Noll, Masako said she'd be coming with us. She'll arrive at any moment now." Madoka informed Naru.

"Since when did she and Mai become so close?" Naru asked without looking away from the file he was skimming. All off them just shrugged in response.

"You should just ask her when you have time Naru." Madoka prompted and at the same time Masako arrived and dislodged from her own van.

"It's nice to see you again Oliver, and you should stop wearing black, it makes me think that you're ready to go straight to a funeral which is obviously not yours, but I for one am not planning to go one in the near future."

That was the first thing Masako said when she faced 'Kazuya Shibuya'. And Naru only raised a brow for her snide remark and Masako covered her mouth with the sleeve of her kimono satisfied with what she said.

"_Don't tell me she was talking about Mai."_ That was what trailed in Naru's thoughts and did not notice that a slight frown was marring his face with just the thought of what Masako was implying.

…

…

…

**Yay! I managed to update in one week! XD**

**I actually asked a friend of mine to keep track of set deadlines I decided to give myself~! Haha XD**

**(I'll treat her to something if I failed to update before the deadline.. cool huh? Means I'll probably be updating every week. Then again—probably.. XD)**

**And another thing that may have helped is that I lost internet connection for days~! So I had time to write(type) without distractions from the internet! Haha XD**

**This chap is a long one if I may say. I hope it's not too boring~! Hehehe. ^^**

**By the way, in this chap, I emphasized two things:**

**1. Mai was living in a quite crowded place but the 'attack' wasn't noticed—at all—by anyone, not even next door neighbor. And..**

**2. Bou-san and ayako's bickering is a must for their relationship and Ayako was clearly out of her pace because of what she saw in Mai's place.**

**I don't know if that's a good thing to do..hehe XD**

**Was it Good? Bad? Better? Worse? ^^ PLEASE WRITE A REVIEW..**

**Oh. And also, I'm planning to prioritize this fic. If you don't mind..hehe ^^**

**Cause I already wrote chapter outlines for this fic until chapter 4 . ^^**

**Again, please REVIEW. Thankies~! ^w^**

**.~*Urdyonlione*~.**


	4. Chapter 3

_**ATTENTION!:**_

_**Good News:**_

_**Ghost Hunt is having a Sequel! "Akumu no Sumu Ie: Ghost Hunt".. It will be published this September in Kodansha's ARIA Magazine. And a Game .. "Love Quintuple+" … Go to Google or tumblr for more details.. XD **_

_**Bad News: **_

_**Both are in Japanese! **_

_**IMPORTANT! :**_

**POLL:**

**IS THE SILVER HAIRED GUY GONNA BE A GOOD GUY? OR A BAD GUY? **

**Review or PM me~ ^^ **(Either way, he's gonna be connected to Mai)

…

…

…

"You are not in the position to reprimand _me_ regarding _my_ choice of wardrobe, _Hara-san_." Naru said with a hint of poison rolling in his tongue. He had his reasons for his subtle rage. Firstly, because he knew that she _knew_ his personal reason for wearing black and heck! She even blackmailed him for it! Secondly, because he himself did not want to go to a funeral let alone… _Mai's_. He had enough funerals for one year, Gene's was enough.

Masako, satisfied that she visibly stirred the narcissist's emotions decided to make one last blow before she finally backs down.

"That I am, _Dr__. Oliver Davis_." Naru flinched with the mention of his _name_. He was about to make a comeback when Lin decided to stop the exchange before it escalates to something much worse.

"Enough with the domestic dispute. The van is ready Naru, save your energy for your psychometry reading later." With that, Naru proceeded to the van together with Lin and Madoka, landing one last glare to the offending medium at sight.

Since this time, Masako will be coming as well, Ayako suggested that she rides with her and Bou-san so she could fill in details they missed to mention from the phone conversations they made. But in truth, Ayako thought that it was the best way to separate the two, since putting Masako and Naru in the same place at this time will do nothing good.

…

The ride to Mai's apartment was a smooth one. Naru slept the entire trip to save and focus his spiritual energy. You might be wondering what his sleeping figure was like, but right now, Naru's sleeping form is not something you'd dreamily sigh at in sight. Lin noted this as he looked at Naru giving the sleeping boy a bit of is attention while driving. Even though he's asleep, his problems lie awake and these problems show on his creased forehead.

Naru had been like that for the past few days—thinking, and thinking.. and thinking—especially after the phone call Madoka made while they we're still in England. The entire time he was thinking of logical—qualified and reasonable—explanations for the blood splattered grotesquely on Mai's apartment without involving a certain trouble magnet's death. Hah! And he calls himself a genius. _Maybe Gene is right,_ he thought. _Maybe he really is an idiot scientist_.

Having these thoughts, Naru squirmed in his sleep. Lin thought that Naru felt him staring even in sleep, people do have those tendencies after all—and above that, he is a psychic. So, with this, Lin returned his full attention to the road.

Madoka on the other hand was _making_ _calls_. She was taking as much precautions as she could and was tying all connections as early as now. After all, their group could be involved in a murder case—but that's the worst case scenario. And no matter how happy Luella is about the fact that her son is finally _opening up_, knowing that Noll is putting himself in grave danger, is a reason to _forcibly_ take his son back to England—if she didn't have the chance to this with Gene, it's a great one to do with Noll.

On the other hand, in Bou-san's car, Ayako talked with Masako. Filling her with details she forgot to mention during the frantic phone conversations they had the day they discovered the mess in Mai's apartment. Through the time that Naru was gone, Masako gave up on him and supported Mai. She did this after reconsidering the dark princes' attitude, two negatives only form a positive in math—a yin-yang was a better choice. They became best friends, yet Ayako said nothing. She knew it was coming—she was, after all, the one who suggested it would happen someday. When it hit them, they remembered what Ayako said in the blood stained labyrinth.

Masako simply nods as Ayako speaks. Masako _is_ a medium. All the time, she was thinking that if something _bad_ really did happen to Mai, she would envision it, especially if it concerns her best friend's _death_. And so far, she hasn't. That is what she reasoned to Ayako, giving her hope that Mai is _still alive_.

When they arrived, you could feel the subtle tension that enveloped the group. Everyone—though not vocally expressed—was afraid of the scene to behold. Yes, they had seen the pictures but it's an entirely different thing to look at _that_ scene in real life. This time they'll feel the heavy atmosphere, they'll smell the drying blood. They knew for a fact that the scene that lies beyond the door they will open may trigger their _emotion_ and _imagination_. Everyone had the same silly though running through their head as they flight through the stairs finally leading to Mai's door—brace yourselves for impact.

"Naru, can you still use psychometry while wearing gloves?" Ayako asked, effectively breaking through the grim silence while she was rummaging her back for surgical gloves.

"We can't leave finger prints." Ayako continued before Naru could even raise his brows.

"I can still function while wearing those." Naru replied as he reached out to get the said item. And the whole team did the same.

Bou-san was the one who volunteered to open the door since he, of all, knew what was coming. He repeatedly reminded everyone _not_ to move anything as _much_ as possible. Naru sighed. And thus he finally opens the door.

All of them stiffened at the offending odor that greeted them. Ayako, despite not saying anything clearly know that its smell is much worse than what she smelt earlier, now the bloody smell turned to the perfect mixture of rotting flesh and—death.

Naru was the first one to regain his composure—even though it wasn't even noticeable that he was greatly shaken by the smell. _It was the same as when I found Gene_—he thought. He visibly glared at the offending smell. One by one they entered the room. Masako, at first did not want to go, but since she may find a clue to Mai's location, she took the second option. Slowly, they examined the room in their own accord.

Unbeknownst to them, Naru's vision started as soon as he picked up the shard of glass from frame that held the picture of Mai's current _family_—SPR. _The photo_, Naru thought, was a peculiar one… Mai wasn't in it but it feels like she was there—because everyone besides him, was smiling, even Lin. His vision began to blur as the hideous scene in front of him takes a new form—an empty living room, clean of any mess and organized as to Mai's liking.

Lin stared at the Naru who was standing still, too still in fact. Everyone turned to him as he said:

"It's starting."

…

…

…

**Truthfully, I wasn't planning to end it at that.. XD**

**I'm late for two days! Please blame the AWESOME NEWS that GHOST HUNT is having a SEQUEL.**

**My mind was shattered into pieces and my heart is overflowing with happiness. I wasn't thinkin straight for the past few days.. XD**

** rara- as promised! I'll treat you tomorrow~! XD**

**One thing I failed to do for the past chapters (silly me):**

**A big THANK YOU to those who READ, FAVORITED, FOLLOWED and especially to those REVIEWED my stories~! LOVE YOU GUYS~! If not for you I wouldn't have had the will to update this.. XD**

**Please REVIEW~! Thankies~! ^^**

**.~*Urdyonlione*~.**


	5. Chapter 4

**Special Thanks to:**

**Chrysanthia-Sunshine—thankyou ~ ^w^**

**Narukietyam—yep~! Stay safe as well~! ^w^**

**On with the fic~! XD**

…

_.~*Vision*~._

_Naru was stabilizing his psychic energy as his surrounding started to shake and absorbed a new form—more like a very fast playback of the scene before him—the scattered pieces of a vase flew back to the table and became a whole again, same with the picture frames, the glass table and the television; the chair stood to its original place as well as the sofa and the other appliances in the apartment; the dried blood melted to its gooey state and seeped into the ground as if replacing the original happening to a less gruesome one and save the actual horrid show for later. _

_The whole place warped until it slowly came to a full stop as it reached the specific time frame that Naru wanted to view. He recalled that he __sometimes__—note the sometimes—fail to go the specific time that he wanted, but if he focus 'entirely' as Lin had said, it would be much more easier to do so. _

_When the sabotaged place was now back to its normal glamor—free of any blood or broken pieces of furniture, Naru turned to the door as he heard it unlock. And here enters Mai Taniyama._

"_Tadaima~!" Mai said as she entered the door. _

"_Okaeri Nasai Mai."_

"_Okaeri Nasai Mai." _

_She replied to herself with a longing sigh, oblivious to the entwined reply of a certain Naru who was also on the same room if not the fact that he was invisible and only his soul is present._

_Naru just stood there, waiting for the next events to happen. Mai on the other hand put down her bag and proceeded to the kitchen, boiling a cup of tea for herself._

"_And what do you know! It seems like I have developed a habit of drinking tea because of Naru. I never knew tea addiction was this contagious." Mai thought out loud and shook her head as if dismissing the thought along with the person involved. Naru at first gave a half-smile at this and proceeded with a frown of disapproval when Mai started to shake her head—not directed to Mai, but to himself—yet he didn't know why._

_Mai stood at the counter half-dazed as she sniffed the tea then sipped it. Naru, being tea-deprived for two months longed for this certain blend of tea. He remembered it quite vividly, how he refused to intake any kind, flavor or blend of tea that was offered to him, even his mother's own recommendation—none of I would taste right, Naru insisted. He also didn't miss Lin's ghost of a smile—not that he'd care anyway._

_He fought for self-control as the vision started to shake. FOCUS. He desperately thought. Then he heard something that immediately took all his focus right away alright. It was a short, steady shriek._

…

"_Kyaaah! Ow ow ow…!" Mai uttered as she blew to the slowly reddening spot on her arm. She unknowingly tipped the kettle causing it to fall and spill tea all over the place including herself. This quickly took Naru's attention. He sighed. He was both thankful and irritated at the same time. 'Really Mai? You haven't change a bit you idiotic klutz.' Naru thought to himself. He was kind of thankful that what happened pulled his consciousness right back—but getting Mai hurt was not really one of the options. _

_Other than that, his anticipation quickly rose. He thought that _something _happened already. And his thoughts didn't quite fail him for the next thing he heard was a ring on the doorbell. He didn't knew why but his blood shot through his veins. It was as if he didn't knew fear until this moment. He admitted it—not that anyone would know. He didn't know if it was the fear of seeing Mai's assailant or seeing Mai being attacked._

"_Coming!" Mai shouted to the 'visitor'. She quickly took the kettle, put it in the sink, threw a rag on the tea spill splattered on the floor then hurriedly went to the door. She looked in to the peak hole first._

'_A wise decision.' Naru thought._

"_Ah! Keiko! Michiru! What are you guys doing here?" Mai giddily said as she unlocked the door oozing with happiness with her friends' sudden visit. Naru calmed himself. 'So it was just her friends.' He thought but the unnerving feeling still wouldn't go away. He wasn't as sensitive as his brother, he was a PK user, he didn't have ESP so hunches as strong as these shouldn't be possible. Yet it was. He braced himself as the scene starts to unfold._

_Keiko and Michiru entered the door normally and proceeded to the living room, but they only stood there as so did Naru, but they didn't know. _And never will._ Naru watched intently. He saw what Mai didn't. She was busy locking the door again. Something screamed in _his_ mind. 'No, don't lock it. Run Mai!' but he knew she'd never hear him. Keiko and Michiru were obviously not the friends Mai knew. In an instant, their fresh girly clothes were covered by a thick red cloak. The faces were also covered, but Naru knew, those weren't Keiko and Michiru anymore, worse, they may not be even _humans_ anymore._

_When Mai turned, she gasped. Cold air surrounded her, she was so _scared _because of _two_ reasons: one, she didn't know those who were standing before her, they were not the _friends_ she had let in in her humble abode and two, she didn't feel any evil intent from them intended for her, they were planning to do evil not to her, but to a much larger scale. But the question was _why. Why _were they there, _what_ do they _need_ from her._

_Memories flooded her train of thoughts. She remembered now, scarcely, but enough. It was what her mother said to her before she passed away. Her last words. She didn't exactly knew what it meant back then but everything fits _now_. They must absolutely not have _her—her power, _the power that her mother _sealed_ deep inside of her. _

"_W-who are you?" Mai began, for now, she'll have to pretend she didn't know anything, she decided it was the best, if she didn't _know_ they she'll be of no use._

"_We are the young ones of the Noblesse, we need you to come with us." And before Mai could even answer, they continued, "You are Naomi and Kaleb's child, the child that wasn't supposed to be _born._"_

_Her heart clenched. It wasn't the name of her mother and father that she grew up with, but her mother told her it was the name branded to her mother and father by birth. It was her mother and father's real names, the key to _seal.

…

_Naru was, for the lack of better word, frightened. He saw Mai flinch once or twice at the mention of her parent's name, and then she began to have seizures. Her limbs were twisted as far as they could possibly be without truly threatening her body's structure. It was a grotesque display and he couldn't stand to watch. But he needed to; he needs to know what happened until the end. Bright glowing golden unknown writings ran into Mai's skin, touching—reaching—every part of her, as if each cell was a lock, and her body was the Pandora's Box, you won't know what lies inside until its open—wide open. He saw, the two unknowns were mesmerized by this light and at the same time, was frightened by it like it was supposed to be something godly and what they had done was extremely sacrilegious._

_Then the golden writings gathered in one spot. It glowed as bright as the sun, Naru couldn't even peek. And it happened. First it enveloped the walls, acting like a shield to the world outside then it struck like lightning, more than that—it pierced anything volatile in its way. It just passed through Naru's ghastly form, but he felt the warmth in it. It was a golden purifying light._

_When he opened his eyes, he now understood what exactly happened, relief flowed in his body, the blood wasn't Mai's it was the two person's blood—and it was the only trace they left._

_Mai swayed, her body couldn't keep up with the strong lively energy flowing inside her, and it was ripping her apart. Naru immediately went to her, attempted to catch her falling form, momentarily forgetting that only his soul was present and Mai's limp body just passed his waiting arms and landed straight to the floor. 'This isn't over yet.' Naru sensed. Mai's body is still here, it shouldn't have—._

_His thoughts were cut off as a silver haired man about his age calmly entered the room. He was picking Mai up, carrying her effortlessly. Naru stood there, devastated. He saw everything and he couldn't do anything about it. Then the man turned back. His gray eyes looking straight at his cold blue ones, then the man smirked, something that rivaled his own, only more sinister._

"_I'll be taking her away then, good luck finding her."_

_Naru was shocked and panic-stricken._

_That man wasn't supposed to see him. This was the vision of the past, it already happened. On the other hand, the silver-haired man was quite amused by Naru's reaction._

"_I'll give you a bonus then, my name is Kail—if that would help." Then he gave Naru a triumphed grin and Naru scowled in return. That man—Kail—walked away, out to the door, until he and Mai were finally unseen. _

_Then Naru snapped back to reality, waiting eyes met his return—eyes filled with hope and burning with anticipation._

…

…

…

**FINALLY~! Finished with this chapter.. XD whoo..!**

**I have now taken down the A/N .. and replaced it with chapter 4 ^^ hope you enjoyed this one~!**

**Please REVIEW~! More reviews more will to write.. LOL XD**

**Thankies~!**

**.~*Urdyonlione*~.**

**P.S. **

**The English translation of "Akumu no Sumu Ie: Ghost Hunt" is now available here:**

** /manga/ akumu_no_sumu_ie_ghost_hunt/**

**Enjoy~! Love lots.. ^^**


	6. Chapter 5

**Note: This will probably be confusing, but the random **_**Italics **_**are Mai's thoughts.. ^^ And there will be new Characters.. OCs~! ^^**

**Enjoy reading~! ^^**

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…

…

Mai woke up not too long ago. Well, her sense is to say the least. Her body seemed to refuse to answer her will. She was indeed exhausted not only physically but also psychically and emotionally. She tried to move her body and open her eyes but her body felt numb. Then she vaguely heard voices. '_I'm probably inside a room.' _She thought. When she heard the sound of the door, her body tensed. '_What a great time to finally move.' _She told herself sarcastically. She tried to act _asleep_ and listened intently on the voices. It was a male's voice, and he's talking to somewhat a child?

"Kenan, it seems like she's already awake." Mai flinched. _He knows I'm awake?!_ She was beginning to panic but the man seemed like he purposely ignored her very obvious reaction. "I'll leave her to your care. I need to tell Ophir the good news. You are now in her hands and not mine, her words are your will. You are to obey only her." Mai's ears perked at this sweet information. Her hopes were high up! "Yes my liege." The young boy answered. "_But_ she is in any way not allowed to get out of the grounds and her orders are only as high as mine." '_Grr. I could probably hear him smirk!' _Mai frowned at this. There goes her hope of escaping and it seems like her captor is amused by toying with her feelings and thoughts.

"I shall leave now. When she decides to cut her sleeping _act_ give her some food and help her dress. Give her a tour of the grounds if she likes." The man spoke once again.

|_click_|

When Mai heard the closing door, she slowly opened her eyes, taking a peek of the surroundings. Her chocolate eyes were met by fresh green ones. It was a fragile looking boy with somewhat orange hair. He was pale skinned but he didn't look unhealthy with it, in fact he young boy looked amazingly beautiful—_perfect._

"Mistress, you have finally decided to open your eyes and grace me with its beauty." The young man stated and bowed deeply, meaning every word he said. Mai slightly blushed at this act; she was never treated so highly in her life, especially when Naru was around. Then again, she dismissed the thought.

"Please raise you head. Your name is Kenan? Am I right?" Mai smiled.

"You may address me as you want mistress." The young boy did raise his head but carefully avoided Mai's eyes—as if looking at it was a sin, that he was only a lowly being. Mai did not like this action, if this continues, she'll never be able to freely communicate with this young boy. "Look at me in the eyes _Kenan_."

"B-but mistress, I am not worthy!"

"My order. Nobody can contradict me right? And please do not be so formal with me, I'll be more comfortable if a child—rather a robot—is with me." Mai said, satisfied that she had won this kid over.

"If that is you wish," Kenan finally looked into Mai's eyes. "But that won't stop me from calling you mistress!—ever."

"Fine, close enough." Mai sighed. Kenan Smiled.

"I'll go and fetch you something to eat, my Mistress. Please do refrain from going outside, my Master is still arranging your introduction and you may be killed at sight for nobody but me and my Master knows of your existence here." He said seriously holding up his index finger as if reprimanding a child. Mai nearly laughed at this but his statement was deadly serious and Mai simply nodded.

|_click_|

When Kenan was out of Mai's view, she battled with herself deciding whether she should take this opportunity to escape or to simply sit there and wait. She thought about young Kenan's words and decided that it was best to wait and other than that, it was undoubtly possible than Kenan would be punished if she acted rashly, and she didn't have the heart to escape knowing that an innocent child would be punished for her safety.

It was Mai's first real look at the room she was in. It had no windows but air flowed freely into it. It was quite spacious, and the bed she was sitting in was fit for a princess. Mai, again, blushed at this thought but it did make sense, after all, she was called 'mistress' by a child and was treated like one—so far.

_I have to ask Kenan about this when he returns, and also about the man he was talking with. Ugh. He was sooo like Naru! _

|_click_|

Kenan enters with two maids one pushing a tray and the other bringing a dress. Mai on the other hand kept her gaze on the floor, remembering Kenan's words that someone might kill her at sight. Kenan noticed this and chuckled. "Don't worry mistress they are my master's trusted servants." Mai glared in return—but only a friendly glare. This was when Mai noticed that the maids were twins and she was quite interested in this and started a friendly conversation.

"Wow. You guys are twins! So cool, just like my friend back in… Japan?" Mai held the thought; it was when she realized she didn't even know where she _currently _was. She turned to Kenan who simply nodded signaling that he'd probably answer later—and so Mai continued. "But his brother is already dead. It was really a loss, he was such a nice and caring guy—but I met him after he died though. Oh. Sorry, that sounds weird doesn't it?" The twins only shook they're head—both blushing—as if it was such an honor for her to talk with her.

"Huh?" Mai was bewildered by these actions and turned to Kenan for an explanation. "They… aren't allowed to talk to you, they are children of the outside world and none of the bloodlines are running in their veins. They are lucky enough to be graced by your presence and I know you'd ask, they do not have a name. They are not worthy enough to have one."

Mai was enraged by this.

"What is it with you people and worthiness?! How could you decide on that!" Kenan and the twins flinched at Mai's voice that was rising by the second. "You!" Mai pointed to the one pushing the tray, "From now on you'll be Tara, and you," Mai pointed to the one holding the dress, "You'll be Kara. And the both of you will be answering me if I talk. Okay?" The two hesitated before answering a stuttering 'Yes'. "Any complaints?" Mai stated the question to Kenan.

"No, My Mistress, your words are my will. Now, change to this dress."

…

…

…

Mai was now dressed differently and she _never_ felt so weird in her life. It was a Victorian fashion dress—complete with frills. It was dark violet and adorned by white ornaments. At first, Mai was elated to wear tis for she had never seen a dress so exquisite but then when she was already in it, she began to feel how heavy it was. Kenan then told her some tips in order to keep her balance and such and guided her to the small table where the food lies. She was a bit excited doing new things. While eating, she noticed Kenan lighting an incense burner in the far corner of the room. It smelled sweet and at the same time so sensual, like a freshly bloomed rose and yet she felt her instincts kicking in—it something dangerous, dark, ominous!—it said. She chuckled at this and remembered a distant memory of someone telling her that it was like an animal instinct.

_Who was it again?_

Suddenly Mai felt scared. She couldn't remember who it was! Yes, she was quite a forgetful person but, it was a distinct part of her life. She should have remembered!

_Who was it?_

_Who?_

This was her last thoughts as she drifted off to a not so peaceful slumber. The last thing she was Kenan's triumphed smirk while heading out the door—which was odd, since the last time she was the child it was the most innocent one she saw. And the last thing she heard was the clatter of the spoon and fork she was holding as it met the floor and she simultaneous voices of the twins that she hardly heard voices from earlier.

"We're sorry mistress."

"For your kindness,"

"We vow our loyalty to you,"

"And to protect you in every way we can,"

"From the ones _you_ consider as your enemies."

"For now, well help you remember,"

"And prevent you from forgetting."

Mai almost missed the faint scent from a bottle the twins put closely to her nose—the mild scent of yellow zinnia and pink carnation.

…

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…

**I know ! This chapter was out of this world.. XD haha .. please tell me if this made sense.. XD btw, this is what happened to Mai. And of course, there will be explanations as the story goes on.. LOL .**

**PLEASE REVIEW .. XD**

**A thousand thankies to those who REVIEWED, FAVORITED and FOLLOWED this story.. ^^ thank you for keeping up with me.. LOL.. XD**

**Btw, I'll start replying to reviews.. if you want spoilers, just tell me.. XD hoho..**

**AGAIN, PLEASE REVIEW..**

**THANKIES~! ^^**

**.~*Urdyonlione*~.**

**P.S. It's my midterm exam this week, but scratch that.. I'll still write.. XD besides, it makes me feel more relieved that I was able to post a chapter up on the net while having my exam. Than thinking about what happens next **_**during**_** the exam.. XD**

**To my mom: Stop me if you can. LOL XD LOVE YOU!**

**P.P.S. I did not double check the spelling and grammar. XD **


	7. Chapter 6

The twins tugged Mai safely into bed and ensured that she will have the most comfortable sleep she could get. Not soon after, Kenan came and ordered the twins to get out and do the other jobs that were assigned to them. He had put out the incense and sat beside Mai's bed—fervently waiting for the moment Mai would wake up. He noticed that Mai stirred frequently in her sleep but decided that it was best if he would not wake her up—since it might be one of the after effects of the incense. Little did he know that the decision to not wake up Mai could cost his and his master's plan to go to waste—or not.

_.~*Dream*~._

_Mai fell into the familiar nothingness once again. She almost laughed at the irony of her actions—she felt constricted and suffocated at the brightly lit room she was in yet she felt so secure and comfortable in the darkness that was engulfing her right now. Her vision began to stir as orbs floated round about, each in different colors or different hues—swaying, dancing around her like moths that wander around a lamp. Then she felt a familiar presence._

'_Gene' The way she thought of the name sounded like a distant whisper, telling her that the man before her was a good man, a man that was an important part of her life—a man she should be able to remember. Memories flooded her thoughts and showed her every detail of their meetings; it was a long replay that was quickly embedded in her mind. _

_Mai turned around and saw that the presence that she felt was indeed there. Her body—or rather, her soul's embodiment—acted quicker than before she could comprehend and analyze how to deal with the current situation. She ran to him half-crying and half-laughing. Yes, she was going crazy indeed—Mai decided—but that wasn't the problem right now._

"_Gene! I thought you would've had passed on!" Mai said as she hugged her best friend. Well at least that is how she decided Gene's importance to her life. Gene in return hugged her back in one tight squeeze then releasing her immediately._

"_Long time no see Mai. I can see that psychic energy is practically oozing out of you now." _

"_Oh." That was the reply that Mai managed to say when she looked at her arms therefore giving her the view of her body subtly enveloped in a golden light._

"_I-is there something wrong with me?"_

"_No, actually it's a good thing. Don't worry. By the way, I'm here to help you. And before you ask why I'm here, I was in a sleep-like state in the time that I wasn't able to visit you in your dreams. But after a while, I felt an odd pull that led me to 'awaken' once again. I found out that Noll—,"_

"_Who's Noll?"_

"_Was frantically sear…ching..for..you.. WHAT?!"_

"_Noll, I'm asking who Noll is."_

"_Noll, is my bother. Oliver Davis! Kazuya Shibuya, Naru!"_

"_Who—?!"_

"_God, Mai! You don't remember him? He has the same face as me for goodness sake! What the hell happened?"_

'_Same face': The same words echoed through her mind, sending her a strong a powerful jolt—like a sudden strike of lightning._

"_Aaaahh-!" Mai clutched her head, a reflex she always thought could lessen the pain—but in truth it could not. She couldn't handle it; the pain was too much for her. Her surroundings came into a vague blur once again and the next thing she saw and the last thing she heard was Gene, calling her name._

"_Mai!"_

_The question she fervently asked herself, did she _awaken_?_

…

…

…

Kenan panicked as he saw Mai squirming in pain and clutching her head which was the most probable cause of it. Her eyes were wide open and dilated but it was obvious she wasn't awake. She was trashing in bed, screaming to her hearts content but it seems like her heart took too much of the opportunity. Kenan quickly called for his master as he saw her mistress' breathe hitch and as if time stopped—so did any movement from Mai. He felt his own heart come to a stop. After recovering from his own set of shock, Kenan went out to his master's current location.

"Master! Master Kail! Mistress Mai had a seizure! Then she suddenly went still—too still in fact! It's as if she's dead!"

Kail quickly stormed in as soon as he heard his aide's frantic call. He quickly sat beside Mai and checked for a pulse—he found none. He quickly did precautions—he undid Mai's corset and it gave Mai's body more space, immediately, he pinched Mai's nose and blew air in her mouth. He watched as Mai's chest rose then fall back again, as if it wasn't even planning to do its purpose by itself the next time around.

"Call the twins—now!" Kail managed to say between his ministrations.

Kenan quickly left the room to answer to his master's orders. Not long after, he came back with the twins following him.

"Master." They said in unison as they genuflect. Kail noticed that the twins doesn't seem fazed by the scene in front of them and quickly deduced that the two might now something about it. Without another thought, a loud slap was echoed throughout the room.

"What.. did you do!" Kail suddenly screamed at their faces, visibly angered.

One of the twins—Tara—is touching her left cheek which is on the verge of swelling and Kara on the other hand is dividing her attention to uselessly glaring at their master and treating her sister. Kara knew they had nothing against their master. Yes, they had powers of their own, but it's never enough.

"Please, stop." Kara said calmly but with ice lacing its tone.

"I am giving you a chance to fix—this!" He said as he pointed to Mai who still shows no sign of ever moving again.

"But we have nothing to do with this! This isn't our fault! It's the incense that you had put. We warned you that it's too powerful that it could easily affect a normal person. But higher ranks you react to it differently. Mai-sama is in definitely powerful being, even without you saying it even we can feel the burning, bright light that is shining in her soul. It'll definitely repel the effects that you wanted and her body didn't take the repulsion in a lighter way!"

Kail suddenly grabbed Kara by her hair and said,

"I can see that you imbecile! That is why I'm saying you _must_ fix this since the incense was also made by you!"

"Fine," Kara hissed. "We'll do what we can, but there is no guarantee."

With his, Kail let her go and Tara immediately ran to her sister. Tara took out a small bottle and Kara mixed some herbs and made Mai drink the whole solution. And thus, they waited.

…

…

…

When Mai woke up, she found herself walking down a familiar road. It was the road she used to take when going to school and she is now wearing her school uniform. She had the urged to think that maybe all the memories she had just had was just a dream—a glimpse of the future. The scene was so serene, so peaceful. When she happened to pass by the old abandoned building, she saw a familiar figure a girl—a mirror image of herself—walking through the abandoned building. Of course, Mai was baffled and confused with these happenings. She tried to run after the said girl but before Mai could even call out to her, the girl had already gone inside. Not long after, a black haired man clad in also in black walked passed her and went straight to the other injured man who was lying in the floor.

She remembered it, how these events happened to her in the past. She knew now—who the man who she forgot is. It was _Naru._

Mai had suddenly had the urge to look at her 'twin' once again, and she was quite shocked when she saw it looking straight into her eyes, sending what you would call a kind of 'electric shock' through her system, and once again, she plummeted into the darkness.

…

…

…

Gene was shaking Mai's embodiment—it was his last resort. Yes, he was as his brother, but at times like these he's the one who tend to panic and forget. Mai's condition was a critical one. For a person who astral projects, her soul practically left the astral plane to travel much further. And for someone who doesn't know how to do this properly, there is a high chance of not getting back.

Mai's body is currently in a deteriorating state. Like when a person astral projects, her mind to body connection ceases at the moment thus leading her to a trance or a sleep. On the other hand, digging deeper than the astral plane leads to the complete cut on the connection of her soul and body, which means—_death._

"_Inception _is really hard to deal with Mai, but please, you're a strong girl, please wake up."

…

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**Done! (sigh) I'm really really sorry everyone! I'm late in updating again. I didn't have internet connection last week, so I didn't have the chance to update! But alas! Here it is~! **

**Please enjoy reading~! ^^**

**Do tell me what you think, Is it good? Bad? Needs improvement? ^^ **

**To those who reviewed, followed and favorite this story, thank you~! XD**

**By the way, my story, "PERFECT TWO" is a series of one shots, so whenever I'm having a writers bock on this fic, I'll update that one. Kay? XD**

**Thank you everyone for your support! ^^**

**Yours,**

**Urdyonlione**

**P.S. Please review.. XD**

**P.P.S Once again, I did not double check the spelling and grammar.. XD**


	8. Chapter 7

**Sorry for the late update minna~! I had a fever I was asleep for daysss! After that I had to attend a dance contest.. XD Please search NEWKISS (Ukiss and 2NE1 Cover Group) in FB and like our page.. Were total amateurs, we'll need all the help and support.. Thanks~! ^^**

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Mai woke up with a jolt. She 'unconsciously' sat down—as always, too quickly—and fell back immediately afterwards because of dizziness. There are only two ways to describe Mai's feelings right now—fuzzy and wuzzy. Mai internally described it as the feeling of being drowned into water then quickly dragged up again. Mai waited patiently for her eye vision to shift barely missing the murmured 'Let me pass' by a familiar and utterly annoying male voice.

When Mai finally opened her eyes, she was greeted by grey ones streaked with blue. It took quite some time for Mai to process the awkward position they were in, and when she did, she let out an ear-splitting shriek.

"KYAAAAAA-!" Mai screamed as she pushed the offender back and scrambled to find a blanket. "Y-you pervert! Get away from me!"

Well she at least expected the said person to be embarrassed or something. But Alas! She was wronged for the person in question is the least bit embarrassed, in fact he was smirking! He made it look that Mai was the one to be embarrassed.

"What the hell! Stop it! Unfair, that's blaming the victim." Mai wailed comically which caused the said man to chuckle audibly.

"That's not the proper way to thank your savior Mai."

"The hell be with my savior then, and also, I'd bet it was Kara and Tara who _really_ saved me."

Kail raised his brows at this, clearly wondering where the names had come from.

"Last time I had checked," Kail said glancing at his watch. "Which is clearly not more than 24 hours ago, these two are deemed nameless. You haven't been here for more than a day and yet you've already broken tradition." Kail continued along with his award winning smirk that could rival Naru's.

"_Phu-lease_, it's your decision to take me here—your loss." Mai said with a triumphed grin.

"That aside, I haven't formally introduced myself yet because, _ahem, _you've been either asleep or _ahem_ pretending to be asleep," and before Mai could retort, he continued with his introductions. "I am Kail. I'm your _fiancé_ and before you ask how or why, it's been decided since you've been born. I'll take you to Ophir once you're ready, he'll fill you in with the details."

Meanwhile, Mai just sat there gaping. Unable to process what the man in front of her just said. Kail is clearly amused by Mai's confused and shocked expression. But he had more important things to take care of so he elected to do it first, since he'll have more of those expressions in the future.

_I'm engaged?! To him?! Why why why why why!_

"Wait!" Mai shouted as Kail reached for the door. "Does this have anything to do with my powers? And my parents? And who's Ophir?" She asked pleadingly. Kail in return gave her a curt nod then proceeded to her bedside.

"The answer is Yes, Maybe, and he's your mother's supposedly fiancé. But, as you can see, your mother left with your father. He really did love Naomi-sama, but he was forced to marry Zillah-sama since a blood descendant was in need at that time. And Zillah-sama was the closest one. On the lighter note, for one, Zillah-sama loved Ophir deeply, on the darker note, Ophir did not since he was loyal to your mother—after all the years."

"WHAT?! How am I going to face him then?" Mai said baffled by the revelations.

"You need not to worry about that, I'm sure that he'll love you like his own daughter, especially since you're Naomi-sama's own flesh and blood."

_Mai._

"Huh? Did you hear that?" Mai said after the short silence. She was pretty sure someone called her name.

"Hear what?" Kail replied.

_Mai._

"See! There was it again. Someone called my name."

_Mai, it's me, Gene._

Mai gasped.

"Ge-!" Mai almost slipped and shouted her ally's name, luckily her body acted quickly and her hands flew to her mouth before she could even complete the name. She was pretty sure that wasn't on her own accord. And so did Kail noticed. He head quickly snapped to the twins, enraged.

Before his hand made contact to one of the twins' cheeks a soft and gentle hand stopped him.

"Please _don't hurt them_." Mai ordered, she didn't know why but she had the feeling that _persuasion_ would work. Unbeknownst to her, her eyes were glowing with streaks of gold.

"Mai," Kail was shocked for he found himself unable to look away from her gaze and subsequently follow her orders. After he regains control he simply said, "Persuasion, I see." Then walked away not long before trailing a hot glare on the twins and Kenan followed suite.

When Kail was surely out of sight, Mai let out a sigh.

"How did you do that? How did _I_ do that? And Gene? Still there?" Mai said out loud, feeling safe since she was now quite sure that the twins were the ones responsible for stopping her from saying Gene's name.

"Your companion would be able to explain Mistress, we're sure of it. We need to quickly get our chores done so that Master Kail would have no chance to question us about your spirit guide. He'll tell you all the information you'll be needing. We must excuse ourselves." Kara said as she lead her twin, Tara, to the door, leaving Mai dumbstruck.

How in the world would she contact Gene? Yes, she was pretty sure she was able to do so moments ago, but she was also thoroughly convinced that it was Gene who initiated the contact.

"Uhh.. Gene?" Mai called out loud.

_Mai? Heya!_

_Gene! How are you able to contact me while I'm awake? _Mai said as he sat down the bed and tried to talk to Gene through her mind.

_Telepathy, obviously._

_Well, yeah. I kinda figured that one out, but I mean I thought you could only talk to me when I'm in the astral plane?_

_Mai, your powers are obviously growing and this is one of the good effects of it. I panicked when you suddenly disappeared in my arms during your stay in the astral plane. You had an _Inception. _ Simply speaking, a dream within a dream. But it meant that your soul traveled further than the astral realm, when you disappeared I thought you'd be gone forever. Noll would probably kill me for letting that happen (even though I'm already dead) He'd probably exorcise his own 'incompetent' brother._

_Speaking of Noll! I remember who he is now. _Mai said as she smiled sheepishly in the real world.

_Good, it's a good thing that I'm able to contact you while you're awake. But you must be careful, you'll look like a crazy lady if you keep grinning to yourself you know. _Mai frowned at this after hearing Gene's mischievous chuckle in her head.

_Oh, and by the way, the twins, they have PK-LT. They specialize in healing and poison making (ironic isn't it?). Also, they can have momentary control over a living person's body, like the one you experienced earlier. Actually, they were also the one who weakened the barrier between you and me—you should _really really_ thank those two. _

_Wow. So they really are powerful, I wonder why they don't plan to escape from this rotten place._

_Mai, you should know, this is like their home, they grew up here—even though not treated like humans—of course they'd still have liking to this place. _ Mai smiled at the thought.

_Oh and Mai, I'm planning to contact Noll soon, so, as much as possible try to get as many information as you can about your location. I'm sure we can do something to help you escape from here._

Mai was about to reply when the twins came to her room holding a towel and a brush.

"Mistress, you must get ready for your presentation to Master Ophir. We'll help you bathe." Tara said with a smile gracing her lips.

Mai quickly followed as she whispered a small thanks and good luck to Gene, finally breaking off from their conversation.

…

The twins lead her to a large bath place. The water was steaming and to Mai, it looked so inviting and relaxing. Without a second thought she slowly dipped herself to the hot bath and the twins followed pouring scented oil to her body. She let her thoughts wonder for the mean time. A little relaxing wouldn't hurt.

After some time, the twins left and let Mai enjoy her bath to herself. Mai thought back to happenings that day—how she gave the twins names, how she almost forgot about Naru, how she almost died, and how his most hated 'enemy' supposedly save her from the said death.

She thought about it deeply. Saved her? She slowly realized how as her hands trailed to her lips.

_CPR._

_Oh NO. NO. NO. It can't be!_

Those are Mai's last thoughts as realization dawned. She let herself let out an ear-splitting shriek.

"HE HAD KISSED ME?!" Mai shouted her thoughts out loud.

Enraged… was an understatement.

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**There~! Done with this chap.. sorry if its late.. I was kinda quite busy.. hehehe .. ^^**

**Hope you enjoyed reading it.. I'll post the next chapter as soon as I can.. **

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**Urdyonlione (^.~)V**


	9. Author's Note

**Everyone, I'm really sorry for not updating for so long! I'm really touched when someone still read these stories.. thank you very much.. I'm resuming uploads on December 20, 2012. It'll be a major upload since I'll be updating ALL my ongoing stories.. Thank you very much for understanding ..**

**Thank you all for your patience. XD**

**Xoxo**

**Urdyonlione :)**


	10. Chapter 8

Naru's vision became quite a blur before finally adjusting and returning to it's perfect 20/20. It was the first time he did a long run psychometry and not faint while at it. Little peeks of the past don't take much of his psychic energy but a whole vision usually takes a toll on his body as much as using quarter of his PK, which is, in any case still not good. Of course Lin still stood close by waiting for Naru to break down and fall but raw energy mixed with a hint of rage is now burning in his veins, keeping him awake and very much alive. It pained him how he saw it all happen and was not able to do something about it.

"What happened? Did you see anything? What about Mai? What—" Ayako burst out the moment Naru emerged from his subconscious.

"Calm down Ayako, he still needs to rest for a bit. You know what happened back in our restaurant case right?" Bou-san chided.

Lin led Naru outside and everyone else soon followed.

"What did you see Naru?" Lin finally asked.

"The blood," Naru said between deep breaths,"It wasn't Mai's." A collective sigh of relief was heard.

"But she was taken away by a man named Kail. Lin, take Madoka and call Yasuhara, find everything you can about a group or cult or whatever it is that is named 'Noblesse'. I'm calling Luella and Martin, I'm pretty sure this doesn't only concern affairs within Japan. Noblesse doesn't sound Japanese does it?"

"Alright." Lin replied, "But be sure to rest your body for quite some time. Madoka?"

"Yes." She replied. "On it." And proceeded to call the said person.

"Yasu can take care of searching in the internet he can use my spare laptop in the office." Lin said.

When Yasuhara picked up, Madoka went straight into details and Yasu accepted the job.

"Of course," Yasuhara replied. "I also have all numbers except Lin-san's and Shibuya-san's."

Madoka proceeded to give the numbers and continued on with her instructions.

"Madoka and I will be searching on SPR's archive through the database." Lin added.

"We can stay on my flat, I'm sure my home computer could handle it." Madoka while now closing her phone and Lin nodded.

"What about us?" Bou-san interjected.

"Obviously, you're not that needed. Take Ayako to the hospital for mild stress treatment, she'll be needing her energy in the near future." Naru replied but that didn't sound right to him.

Bou-san reached for Naru's collar and yanked.

"You can't always do this to us! We've been through enough! You can't expect us to be sit still until you guys find something. Haven't you learned something while you were away?! Mai is important to us as much as it is to you!"

Lin touched Bou-san on his shoulder and shook his head and gave crooked smile to his ward.

"Houshou, we all know Naru's… sentence issues will never change. What he meant was you and Ayako needs to be in top shape in case we find something and will need to travel."

"That's true," Masako added. "Ayako doesn't really look like she can handle long travels at her state right now. I'll accompany you for the time being for I am also not needed in the fact finding part of this case."

With that Bou-san released his grip on Naru and ruffled his hair.

"You could've said it in a better way Naru-bou, sorry if I over reacted, you know.. stress piling up."

"You've never thought the day would come that you could ruffle Oliver Davis' hair and walk away with it did you? It's your lucky day." Then Naru walked to the van and left Bou-san gaping forcing chuckles from the other SPR members despite the problems they were facing.

"When did he learn how to joke?" Bou-san added.

"No idea, he just wanted to prove you wrong—he did learn something." Madoka said.

"I think its side effect of tea-deprivation." Lin interjected.

"More like Mai-deprivation." Masako added.

"Agreed. That was my guess too." Ayako said as a finale.

Everyone almost sighed at the mention of Mai. It only proved how she affected their lives, even the cold hearted narcissist's heart was melted, more so in theirs.

"That reminds me, was John informed on all of these?" Ayako suddenly remembered.

"Yes, I've been calling him." Masako said, blushing and Ayako couldn't help but smile warmly at her. If Mai wasn't missing right now, the toughest problem they'll face might be about Masako and the priest's relationship.

"Let's get going." They hear Naru say from the van. They proceeded to their own rides—the same set up as they did the first time. And they part their ways, hoping to do their part perfectly so that their beloved friend can be back unharmed.

**#####**

**This chapter is for the following people who looks forward to dec. 20.. XD**

**thearistocrat**** , ****Chrysanthia-Sunshine**** , ****icestar123****, ****Treelow955****, ****Rhiannonlee93****, ****WhisperToTheWolves****, **** .23**** ..**

**Did anyone notice John wasn't on the first 7 chapters?! XD I just noticed.. haha XD**


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